Amazon Tightening Restrictions on Horror

You might have heard, Amazon has changed it’s policy towards “graphic content” from content providers using its Amazon Video Direct service. As reported in The Bloodshed, films by Dustin Mills, Drew Bolduc, Scott Schirmer, and more are being affected.

But this isn’t just limited to filmmakers utilizing AVD. Our film, Other Halves, was submitted through an established distributor, and yet the movie was still restricted behind an age gate. (See reporting in the Decider, iHorror, and San Diego Gay & Lesbian News.) In order for Other Halves to appear in searches, we were told to re-edit our movie, removing a mere seven seconds of footage. The key factor? Those seven seconds contained a naked man.

The shots also contained a fully naked woman, and both characters were covered in blood, but those details did not seem to be at issue. Other Halves features several instances of nudity, but once we removed the only naked man, Amazon allowed the film to show up in searches without any special restrictions, on Prime.

Unsurprisingly, the horror fan community is not very happy about these developments.

Other Halves, like many movies available on Amazon Prime, is intended for a mature, adult audience. We take no issue with wanting to prevent children from seeing it. What surprises us, though, is the double standard towards male and female nudity.

Other streaming services appear to have different standards. The film is available in its original state on Google Play, Vudu, and iTunes.

Archives

HORRO'S HOUSE OF HORROR

SPREAD THE HORROR

About

Welcome to PromoteHorror.com, where we bring creators of horror and horror fans together! Our goal is to Spread the Horror! Find out how you can be promoted on the "About" page. You can also email us at HorrO@PromoteHorror.com.